Stuart Nicholson (October 11, 1865 – September 10, 1936) was an officer of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

who achieved the rank of admiral. He was involved in many international campaigns during his naval service from 1878 through 1920. From 1903-1905 he was Assistant-Director of the

Naval Intelligence Department The Naval Intelligence Department (NID) was the intelligence arm of the British Admiralty from 1887 until 1912 when most of its subsidiary divisions were absorbed during the creation of the Admiralty War Staff department that included a new Nava ...

. In 1911-1912 he served as Chief of Staff to Admiral Sir Edmund Poë, Commander-in-Chief of the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

he was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

in the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the Fi ...

and commanded the

6th Battle Squadron The 6th Battle Squadron was a squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of Battleships serving in the Grand Fleet and existed from 1913 to 1917. History First World War August 1914 In August 1914, the 6th Battle Squadron was based at Portla ...

. The recipient of several medals and honors, he was named a Member of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, ...

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second chil ...

in 1908.

Career

A graduate of the Royal Naval School, Nicholson began his career in the

in 1878. For his service during the

Anglo-Egyptian War The British conquest of Egypt (1882), also known as Anglo-Egyptian War (), occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom. It ended a nationalist uprising against the Khedive Tewfik Pasha. ...

of 1882 he was awarded the Egypt Medal and the Khedive's Star. He achieved the rank of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

on April 11, 1885. In 1888 he became the commander of a TB.29 class torpedo boat. During the

Benin Expedition of 1897 The Benin Expedition of 1897 was a punitive expedition by a British force of 1,200 men under Sir Harry Rawson in response to the ambush of a previous British party under Acting Consul General James Phillips, of the Niger Coast Protectorate. ...

he served with distinction on the HMS St George and was awarded a medal. His service during this expedition also led to his promotion to the rank of

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain ...

. Nicholson was promoted to the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on June 26, 1902. From 1903-1905 he was Assistant-Director of the

. He was appointed commander of the

HMS Dido Seven ships of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS ''Dido'', after Dido, the legendary founder and queen of Carthage. * was a 28-gun sixth-rate launched in 1784 and sold in 1817. * was an 18-gun corvette launched in 1836, used as a coal h ...

in March 1906; remaining in that post until March 1907 when he was appointed commander of the armored cruiser

HMS Natal HMS ''Natal'' was a armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. She escorted the royal yacht in 1911–1912 for the newly crowned George V of the United Kingdom, King George V's trip to India to attend ...

. Nicholson was named a Member of the

on June 10, 1908 by

. In 1911-1912 he served a Chief of Staff to Admiral Sir Edmund Poë, Commander-in-Chief of the

. In 1912 he was promoted to Rear-Admiral and served as the commander of the

from 1913 through 1916 in the midst of

. He was subsequently promoted to Vice Admiral in 1917 and finally Admiral in 1920. He retired shortly after achieving this final rank. Nicholson died on September 10, 1936.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Stuart 1865 births 1936 deaths Royal Navy admirals Members of the Royal Victorian Order